Vial of Rubble from the Ruins of the House of Commons, London, England.
Date1941
DimensionsOverall: 7.6 cm
Credit LineGift from the City of London, Ontario, 1962
Object number1962.022.009
Label TextOn June 18, 1941, William J. Heaman, London’s mayor, received a small glass phial of ash and rubble taken from the wreckage of the British Houses of Parliament. This gift came to him from Miss Flora Wright, the driver of the “Iron Duke,” a blitz-scarred mobile canteen which rolled into London, Ontario, for a two-day stay. On a tour across parts of Canada, this YMCA-operated vehicle helped to raise money for the Queen’s Canadian Fund for Air Raid Victims.
The “Iron Duke” was one of more than 500 mobile canteens or tea wagons, which different national YMCAs operated by the end of 1940. These canteens and their hosts and hostesses followed armies as they moved across Europe. They also travelled around bombed-out and fire-ravaged British cities, serving hot beverages and meals to air raid survivors, fire fighters, soldiers, and others.
In each community it visited, the “Iron Duke” attracted thousands of Canadians. They wanted to see this veteran of 33 air raids, which, in England, had travelled 11,000 miles (17,703 kilometres). Young and old marveled over its battle scars: a burned roof as well as bullet and shrapnel holes. They wanted to donate to the Queen’s Canadian Fund for Air Raid Victims. And locals wanted to participate in the special events staged by their community to showcase the “Iron Duke.”
For their part, Londoners thronged downtown streets on the morning of June 18th. At 11:30 am the program began. “B” Company of the Kent Regiment and the band of the Royal Canadian Regiment formed a parade to escort Miss Wright, behind the wheel of the “Iron Duke,” past the eager onlookers. Mayor Heaman and civic dignitaries welcomed their guests upon their arrival at City Hall. Miss Wright then conducted an informal inspection of the troops before returning to the canteen to listen to welcoming remarks. She then spoke to Londoners, telling them that the “Iron Duke” was the “first major war relic to tour Canada from the Battle of Britain” and that it “had emerged from some of the worst Nazi bombing raids on Old London.” She continued, “[U]ndaunted, it will carry on to the end of the job.” After presenting the phial of ash and rubble to Mayor Heaman, Miss Wright entered the canteen and passed him a steaming cup of tea. While the canteen’s Public Address system blared a recording of an actual air raid, Londoners approached the “Iron Duke” to receive a free cup of tea and to deposit donations into a large teapot on its counter. The next day, Miss Wright drove the “Iron Duke” to 28 London schools. At each stop, students and teachers inspected the canteen and contributed to the air raid victims’ fund.
Before Flora Wright and the “Iron Duke” arrived in the city, Londoners had donated $15,047.88 to the fund. By the time they departed, that sum had risen to $15,326.56. This was one of many fund-raising initiatives to which Londoners were asked to contribute to support Canada’s war effort.
NameVial
c. 1880-1910
